The annual Dorset Opera Festival is the place to be seen during the last week of July, when world-class opera stars descend on the county.
Spring has most definitely “sprung” and the team behind Dorset’s most successful summer festival – the Dorset Opera Festival – is hard at work coordinating the input of its brilliant designers with their set construction and costume‑making colleagues.
The 52‑year‑old festival, which takes place at the end of July, involves up to 280 participants, including exciting international star soloists from across the globe; a full professional orchestra; music staff (including two conductors); production and technical staff; wardrobe personnel (with students from the historical costumes department of the Arts University, Bournemouth), along with a team of 70 volunteers in front‑of‑house and organisational duties.
The chorus of 60, which again joins the festival from around the world, is already busy learning the music for this year’s two operas:
- Donizetti’s hilarious but poignant love story based entirely on misunderstanding, L’elisir d’amore (The Elixir of Love)
- Camille Saint‑Saëns’ dramatic biblical epic, Samson et Dalila.
We are all aware of the story of Samson, the leader whose strength lies in his long hair. Once he admits where his power lies, Delilah orders that his hair be cut while he sleeps, thus depriving him of his phenomenal strength. To get revenge, Samson prays for his power to be restored one last time and, as his prayers are answered, he famously tears down the pillars of the temple, destroying his enemies and himself in the process. This epic should hopefully provide audiences with one of the most spectacular stagings ever to be seen outside London's West End.
The operas take place in the 600‑seat Coade Theatre at Bryanston, the famous public school on the outskirts of Blandford Forum. The theatre stands amidst 400 acres of Dorset countryside, through which the River Stour meanders on its way to the sea at Christchurch.
Audiences can enjoy formal five‑course opera dinners in one of the staterooms of Bryanston House on Thursday and Saturday evenings, and picnics are available to pre‑order from the large marquee bar. Afternoon tea is also available for matinée performances.
If you are bringing a party, you may hire one of the attractive individual pavilion tents seating six or 10 people. Enjoy your Dorset summer.
Tel: 07570 366186
Box office: boxoffice@dorsetopera.com
General enquiries:info@dorsetopera.com
Website:dorsetopera.com
